Not to worry though. The SEC always loses talent and replaces it. This year, the SEC has five of the top seven recruiting classes in the 247 composite recruiting class rankings, so the haul of new talent seems to be again disproportionately skewed to the south.

That doesn't mean it will all be easy to replace.

Indeed, much of it may be impossible to replace, especially in spots where more than one dominant player contributed to an outstanding effort. Often, it took two to tango, or one with a pair of unique talents.

Here are the hardest duos to replace in the SEC:

1. Johnny Manziel's run-pass ability at Texas A&M: Yes, Manziel is just one guy, not two.

But he tops the list because his dual-threat ability unlike any player we've seen before and may ever see again. He's one player with the production of two stars.

It's rare to see a team with a 3,700-yard passer and an SEC-leading rusher. At Texas A&M, the Aggies had that in the same player in Manziel's Heisman-Trophy winning freshman season. That's something we may never see again.

Cam Newton wasn't a 3,000-yard passer. Tim Tebow was never a 1,000-yard rusher. Manziel rushed for 1,400 yards. He didn't repeat those rushing numbers as a sophomore, but then again, he threw for 4,000 yards.

That presents Kevin Sumlin with a problem as Manziel leaves for the NFL. One does not simply plug Matt Joeckel, Kenny Hill or Kyle Allen into the offense and expect him to do the same things Manziel did. The Aggies' offense will have to adjust and evolve going forward.

2. Jadeveon Clowney and Kelcy Quarles, South Carolina: So much of South Carolina's defensive identity was built around the dominance of the freakishly talented Clowney at defensive end one could forget that at defensive tackle, Quarles was more productive with 9.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss.

The pair will be hard to replace, even if Clowney's numbers were underwhelming. The most likely candidates are the Gerald Dixon (half) brothers, who will have much to live up to.

3. Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry, LSU: The 2013 LSU offense was the first in school history to produce a 3,000-yard passer (Zach Mettenberger), a 1,000-yard rusher (Jeremy Hill and two 1,000-yard receivers in Landry and Beckham.

Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry were both 1,000-yard receivers for LSU in 2013.

While LSU should feel pretty confident about replacing Mettenberger (with Anthony Jennings) and Hill (with super recruit Leonard Fournette), finding receivers as productive as the two early-departing juniors will be more difficult.

With the pair having carried so much of the receiving workload, there aren't many proven pass-catchers back. Travin Dural will be the top guy back, but LSU might look to its recruiting class to find other reliable targets for Jennings.

4. Kony Ealy and Michael Sam, Missouri: Sam is the first senior to appear on the list. The SEC's co-defensive player of the year led the league in sacks from his defensive end spot, but the Tigers' other end, Ealy, is considered by many a better pro prospect.

They were the best defensive end tandem in the league and while Missouri has one star in waiting in Markus Golden, who had 6.5 sacks as a reserve, it'll be hard-pressed to produce a pair as good as this one.

5. Tre Mason and Jay Prosch, Auburn: There is so much to love about Auburn's run game with all of its misdirections, options and speed sweeps using wide receivers.

But at the heart of Gus Malzahn's offense was a power rushing game that was better than most recognized. Mason, the Heisman Trophy Finalist at running back, ran with more power than people gave him credit for and, as a fullback, Prosch may have been the best lead blocker in college football.